SOC 11-9032.00

    Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary

    Plan, direct, or coordinate the academic, administrative, or auxiliary activities of kindergarten, elementary, or secondary schools.

    Median pay
    $105,870
    Growth
    -0.3%
    Little or no change
    Openings a year
    20,600
    Typical education
    Master's degree

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

    See the pathway

    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $76,280
    Median
    $105,870
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $167,770
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    328,330 people work in this occupation.

    In short

    Education administrators in kindergarten through secondary schools manage school operations, academic programs, and staff. They earn a median annual pay of $105,870, with salaries ranging from under $76,280 to over $167,770.

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What education administrators, kindergarten through secondary do

    Job Zone 5: Extensive preparation

    Plan, direct, or coordinate the academic, administrative, or auxiliary activities of kindergarten, elementary, or secondary schools.

    Most need a graduate degree, such as a master's, PhD, MD or JD.

    What the work is like

    These administrators, who often work as school principals, curriculum directors, or athletic directors, oversee the daily activities of elementary, middle, and high schools. Their primary responsibilities involve establishing strong interpersonal relationships, building cohesive teams, and teaching or coaching others. On any given day, they make critical decisions, solve complex problems, and resolve conflicts among staff, students, or parents. They must organize and prioritize school activities while communicating regularly with school boards, teachers, and the public.

    To succeed in this role, individuals need strong skills in active listening, speaking, reading comprehension, and personnel management. They rely on a deep knowledge of education and training, administration, personnel resources, and psychology. Because this is a highly social occupation, administrators must demonstrate leadership, dependability, empathy, and high stress tolerance to handle the daily challenges of school management.

    How to get there

    Entering this career typically requires extensive preparation. Most professionals in this field need a graduate degree, and a master's degree is the typical education required to enter the occupation. Some administrators may hold a doctoral degree, such as a PhD.

    The most common college major leading to this career is educational administration and supervision. Depending on where they work, candidates should note that some states list a license for this type of school administration work.

    Pay and outlook explained

    The median annual wage for these school administrators is $105,870. The lowest-paid 10 percent of workers earn less than $76,280, while the highest-paid 10 percent earn more than $167,770.

    There are 328,330 people employed in this field. From 2025 to 2035, employment is projected to experience little or no change, with a growth rate of -0.3 percent. Despite this flat growth, the occupation is expected to have about 20,600 job openings each year.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R)
    5 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    34 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    31 / 100
    Social (S) · strongest
    79 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    72 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    61 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code SEC. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
    97
    Training and Teaching Others
    93
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    91
    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    89
    Developing and Building Teams
    88
    Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
    87
    Coaching and Developing Others
    86
    Communicating with People Outside the Organization
    86
    Getting Information
    85
    Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others
    83
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Active Listening
    • Learning Strategies
    • Judgment and Decision Making
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Speaking
    • Critical Thinking
    • Writing
    • Management of Personnel Resources
    • Active Learning
    • Complex Problem Solving

    Knowledge

    • Education and Training
    • Administration and Management
    • English Language
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Psychology
    • Administrative
    • Personnel and Human Resources
    • Mathematics
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Computers and Electronics

    Abilities

    • Oral Comprehension
    • Oral Expression
    • Written Comprehension
    • Speech Clarity
    • Deductive Reasoning
    • Written Expression
    • Inductive Reasoning
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Speech Recognition
    • Fluency of Ideas

    Work styles

    • Leadership Orientation
    • Dependability
    • Integrity
    • Cooperation
    • Social Orientation
    • Self-Confidence
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Empathy
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Perseverance

    Also called

    Assessment Coordinator · Athletic Coordinator · Athletic Director · Curriculum and Instruction Superintendent · Curriculum Director · Educational Program Director · Elementary Principal · Elementary School Principal · Headmaster · Junior HS Principal (Junior High School Principal)

    Career pathway

    From your interests to education administrators, kindergarten through secondary

    Interests that fit the work, the career, majors that lead there and colleges whose graduates in those majors earn the most. Hover or focus a step to follow one path.

    1. Interests

    2. This career

      • Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary$105,870 median pay

    3. Majors

    4. Colleges

    College Scorecard program outcomes

    Colleges with strong outcomes

    Programs that lead to this career, ranked by what their graduates earn four years after finishing. Earnings are for graduates who received federal aid.

    1. 1University of Delaware logo
      University of Delaware

      Newark, DE · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $58,895
      4 yrs after
      $72,710
      Median debt
      $25,000
    2. 2University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee logo
      University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

      Milwaukee, WI · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $42,610
      4 yrs after
      $46,822
      Median debt
      $25,175
    3. 3
      Rasmussen College-Florida

      Ocala, FL · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $45,145
      4 yrs after
      $46,541
      Median debt
      $38,881
    4. 4
      Rasmussen College-Minnesota

      St. Cloud, MN · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $45,145
      4 yrs after
      $46,541
      Median debt
      $38,881
    5. 5Ohio State University-Lima Campus logo
      Ohio State University-Lima Campus

      Lima, OH · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $37,536
      4 yrs after
      $42,187
      Median debt
      $19,500
    6. 6Ohio State University-Mansfield Campus logo
      Ohio State University-Mansfield Campus

      Mansfield, OH · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $37,536
      4 yrs after
      $42,187
      Median debt
      $19,500
    7. 7Ohio State University-Marion Campus logo
      Ohio State University-Marion Campus

      Marion, OH · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $37,536
      4 yrs after
      $42,187
      Median debt
      $19,500
    8. 8Ohio State University-Newark Campus logo
      Ohio State University-Newark Campus

      Newark, OH · Educational Administration and Supervision · Bachelor's

      1 yr after
      $37,536
      4 yrs after
      $42,187
      Median debt
      $19,500

    Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard field-of-study data, 2025. Programs with few graduates are not listed.

    NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk

    Majors that lead here

    Related programs by four-digit CIP code. They are common routes in, not the only ones.

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What education administrators, kindergarten through secondary may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Training

    Programs of study that prepare people for this work.

    • Early Childhood Program Administration
    • Educational Leadership and Administration, General
    • Educational, Instructional, and Curriculum Supervision
    • Elementary and Middle School Administration/Principalship
    • International School Administration/Leadership
    • Secondary School Administration/Principalship
    • Superintendency and Educational System Administration

    Find training near you on CareerOneStop

    Licenses by state

    38 states list a license for this work. Open your state for the license and the agency that issues it.

    Check license requirements on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Your plan

    Build my pathway plan

    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

    All careers

    Questions about education administrators, kindergarten through secondary

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What are some common job titles for this career?

    People in this field are often employed as elementary school principals, junior high school principals, headmasters, curriculum directors, and athletic directors.

    What is the typical education required to become a school administrator?

    Most professionals in this field need a graduate degree. A master's degree is the typical level of education required to enter the career.

    Are there many annual job openings expected in this field?

    Yes, even though the overall employment change is projected at -0.3 percent from 2025 to 2035, there are still about 20,600 job openings projected each year.

    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.